Second Chances
by Si.Crazy
Summary: Angel wakes up to himself with a little help from a friend.


Title: Second Chances  
  
Author: Si_Crazy  
  
Rating: TV 14  
  
Email: si_crazy@pop.com.br  
  
Summary: Angel wakes up to himself with a little help from a friend.  
  
Spoilers: Season 2  
  
Disclaimer: The characters in the Angelverse were created by Joss Whedon & David Greenwalt. No infringement is intended, no profit is made.  
  
Distribution: AO. If you want, just let me know.  
  
Notes: This is the first fic that I wrote, so be nice... Anyway, this is for Scorch! The requests were:  
  
· Cordy/Angel  
  
· Cordy/Spike – friendship  
  
· Wes/Faith – friendship  
  
· Angelus in some shape or form  
  
· Hot tub  
  
Feedback: Yes, please.  
  
Dedication: I would like to thanks Kim, Stary and Kat. They supported me and helped me a lot!!! Thanks girls!!!! I love you!!!!  
  
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The office was quiet, too quiet in Cordy's opinion. A quiet office never boded well in the overall scheme of things.  
  
"When things are quiet like this it probably means that something is going to happen." Cordy thought out loud.  
  
Wesley, who was recovering from his gunshot wound and was enthralled with researching the origins of the Dem'Sha Demon, just replied with a quick OK, not really paying attention to his friend and work mate.  
  
"Lately, just means that we're out of clients and soon enough we'll have to start planning on how we will rob a bank." Said Gunn only semi-joking, as he sat playing his Game-Boy.  
  
"That's not true!!!!! We've been having cases..." said Cordy in defense of their new business.  
  
"Yeah, the vision cases. But those are not the paying type of cases. You have to admit, we're screwed!"  
  
Wesley's head shot up at that. "We have to believe that things will get better. I'm sure that anytime now a client will come though that door. Positive thoughts! That's the way to go."  
  
"Yeah! See Gunn? Wes is right! We have to have positive thoughts. Besides the only person that was always feeling sorry for himself was Angel, and hey! He is not even here anymore. So cheer up!!"  
  
"Ok. I'm on board with the having of these positive thoughts. But just for the record, I'm damn bored!"  
  
Cordy gave him a small smile and returned to reading her magazine, and Gunn went back to his game.  
  
Everything stayed silent for hours as the team mates enjoyed the silent camaraderie until all of a sudden the door opened.  
  
"Dear Lord!" "Oh my God!" – gasped Wesley and Cordy in unison at the sight of the person standing framed by the doorway – "Faith?!"  
  
"Hey! How you doing?" Faith offered nonchalantly.  
  
"I told you guys that something was about to happen." Grumbled Cordelia, while she and Wesley slowly backed away and reached for weapons. Gunn observed how agitated they were and taking his cue from his friends, stiffened and got ready to fight.  
  
"Whoa!!" Faith raised her hands demonstrating that she came in peace. "I'm not here to hurt you. Promise!"  
  
"Well if you say so..." Cordy remarked sarcastically, aiming her crossbow at the slayer.  
  
"Sorry Faith! But this time we're ready for you. Things have changed since your last visit. I'm a fighter now. We can defend ourselves." Warned Wesley.  
  
"And so am I. Don't know who you are, but if you try anything with English and Barbie, there will be hell to pay, and I'll make sure it gets paid, so don't even try." Gunn growled aggressively at the perceived threat.  
  
"Are you guy's deaf? I'm reformed now! My parole came up and I'm trying to redeem myself." Faith was becoming annoyed by the hostile reception, although what she had expected she wasn't sure.  
  
"You're looking for redemption?!" asked Wesley surprised and at the same time not. "So, your first step is..."  
  
"It was seeing Angel, but he was different, and not in the good kind of way. If I didn't know better I would have thought that he was up to his old tricks." Seeing the looks the three shared, Faith became worried. "He isn't back to his old tricks, right?"  
  
"Hmm... Maybe...Almost..." muttered Cordy.  
  
"Maybe? Well, how can you lot not know? It's a simple thing, did he have a happy and lose his soul, or is he still with the soul?" Faith was definitely annoyed now and extremely impatient, things were not going at all as she had imagined and she wasn't getting any answers.  
  
"Actually it's not that simple, Faith" Wesley began to explain, but Gunn wasn't understanding what was happening and he really didn't like to stay in the dark.  
  
"Hold on a sec, man. Who is this girl? Why did you both treat her as some sort of ugly monster when she first came in and now you're having a conversation with her?"  
  
"It's a long story..." Faith began to explain.  
  
"Excuse me! I wasn't talking to you, 'lady'." Gunn glared at Faith, stopping her explanation before it could effectively begin, he wasn't sure he would trust anything she said anyway.  
  
"Gunn, this is Faith. She is a Slayer." Wesley made an introduction.  
  
"The psycho type" added Cordy.  
  
Gunn eyed Faith up and down "I thought she was blonde and her name was Baff or something?"  
  
"No that's Buffy, and she is another one. I'll explain it all to you later, Gunn." Cordelia offered.  
  
With all the commotion Faith had stopped her entrance just inside the office door, keeping herself near the exit. Even if Wesley had let his guard down a little, Cordelia's crossbow was still aimed at her and Gunn was still in the position to start a fight. Years of slayer training, made Faith keep a clear line of exit in all threatening situations.  
  
"Ok. She kills demons professionally just like us, still doesn't explain the whole commotion."  
  
"She tried to kill us." Cordy bluntly offered.  
  
That was enough to make Gunn feel protective of his friends and watch every move Faith made. No one tried to kill his friends and got away with it, obviously this girl wasn't to be trusted.  
  
"So, how did you find our office, slayergirl?" asked Cordelia.  
  
"After Angel's I went to that bar Caritas looking for that green demon and asked where I could find you."  
  
"And the host gave you the address just like that? Yo English, we have to talk to him about this. We only help good folks."  
  
"He read me; he knew that I would present no harm to you, that's why he told where to find you. He was like head security for you both, and all with a very colorful taste in clothes."  
  
"You sang to him?" asked Cordelia curiously, she wondered what song Faith had chosen.  
  
"That's not something I want to talk about. Now that things are clear, why don't you fill me in on what the hell is up with Angel, Wes?" Faith asked Wesley, for some reason feeling sure that she was most likely to get answers from her former watcher than either of the others, they still seemed too hostile.  
  
"You might want to take a seat; this is quite a long story." Wesley invited Faith to sit.  
  
"By the way, why are you in a wheelchair?"  
  
"Another long story..."  
  
"But you're going to walk again, right?"  
  
"Yes, I'm just recovering from a gun shot wound."  
  
"Oh, ok then, I'm sorry to hear that Wes." Faith offered sincerely.  
  
Faith seated herself in front of Wesley whilst Gunn remained standing in front of the door like a security guard and Cordy reluctantly put the crossbow down and warned the slayer "If you try to harm us in any way, I don't care if you're a Slayer or the Batgirl, I will kill you."  
  
"I got it C. Don't worry!"  
  
Not completely satisfied with the answer but feeling relief that Faith got the message, Cordy went back to the article she was reading, although she kept glancing at the slayer as Wesley filled Faith in on Angel's Darla obsession.  
  
"I can't believe Angel threw away his mission for his sire!" Faith was truly shocked; since Angel had rescued her she had thought of him as a shining example of the fight for redemption.  
  
"Well he did." Gunn informed her bluntly.  
  
"I mean he dusted her for B years ago, and now he took her side? I guess he really lost it!"  
  
Seeing Wesley and Cordelia's faces, Faith realized that they were upset, angry and disappointed. Feelings that she was pretty used to by now. Based on the reactions of Wesley and Cordelia and their behavior since she had arrived, Faith made a difficult decision.  
  
"I came here to apologize to you both, especially you Wesley, for having... you know..."  
  
"Tortured him almost to death? That's just a wild guess here" Cordy said a little bitterly.  
  
"Yes" muttered Faith.  
  
"Look Faith, if I said that that's ok, I would be lying. It's not something I can just forgive and forget. The truth is, I'm having to control myself to not start a fight with you and get revenge for everything you did to me." Wesley responded honestly to the apology.  
  
"I understand."  
  
"But it means something that you came. You were my slayer, my responsibility, and I can't help thinking that I'm partially to blame for what happened to you." Wesley offered an olive branch.  
  
"So now that I'm out, I'm gonna need a job, food, place to crash, and... a watcher." Faith began hesitantly.  
  
Seeing the look of surprise on Wesley's face Faith explained – "I can't leave town, and I'm still a slayer. A very problematic slayer that needs some guidance, and I don't want to have to deal with the Council right now, so I was thinking that maybe you would consider the idea of being my watcher again."  
  
All of a sudden the room grew quiet and Faith regretted what she had said and started to leave, "On second thoughts, maybe I'd better go."  
  
"Wait!"  
  
Faith turned back to Wesley – "Yeah?"  
  
"I agree that you need guidance. Outside the jail things aren't black and white, there's lots of grey, and you need to learn and realize what is evil and what is good. Besides we could always use a slayer here at A.I."  
  
Faith gave a small smile to Wesley and thanked him. Cordy was about to protest, but didn't - "Some extra muscle could be helpful, and if we don't get paying clients she can carry the money out of the bank."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Inside joke" – Gunn explained. "Welcome! Don't betray us."  
  
"I won't. Why is the agency still called Angel Investigations without Angel?"  
  
With the offer from Wesley and begrudging acceptance from Cordelia and Gunn, Faith felt as if a weight had lifted from her shoulders. She vowed to herself to never let these people down, they would never know what it meant to her to be offered a second chance, but she would show them that she could be trusted.  
  
"We're changing it!" – all three stated in unison.  
  
"You can stay here in the office for a while Faith, there is a small bedroom in the back, we use it for resting when there's nothing important to do. We're just starting off in business and we don't have cash to loan at this very moment." Wesley offered.  
  
"And I'm not inviting psycho slayer to stay with me! Dennis still remembers her, and I wouldn't blame him if he threw a lamp at her head." There was only so far Cordy was willing to trust Faith just yet, maybe when she had proved herself, Cordy would be able to relax a little more.  
  
"That's why I suggested Faith stay here, I wouldn't feel that comfortable with her in my apartment either, no offence Faith!"  
  
"None taken. I understand."  
  
"Yeah, and I prefer that you stay here too, I don't want to have to be worried that you'll torture Wesley while he is sleeping. It's just that I don't know you enough to trust you."  
  
"I know. Besides, here is good. I won't be late for work." Faith joked to ease the tension.  
  
"If everything is decided, I'm going home, 'cause it's late and I'm hungry and tired. Gunn, can you give me a lift?"  
  
"Sure, Cor. Let's go Wes!"  
  
"Right, see you tomorrow, Faith" "Bye!" "Nite!" Cordy, Wesley and Gunn gathered their belongings and left for the night.  
  
"Bye guys!" – And when the door closed she said "Thanks!"  
  
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"Okay, thanks boys! See you tomorrow!" Cordelia climbed out of the truck in front of her apartment.  
  
"Bye Cor!" "Goodnight, darling!"  
  
The truck didn't move until they were sure she was safe inside her apartment. Gunn and Wesley had become really protective of Cordy of late. They both realised how important her well being was to them.  
  
"She seems... like she is getting over the whole being fired thing, don't you thing English?" Gunn asked hopefully.  
  
"Strangely, yes. One would think that it would take more time, but she is recovering pretty fast. I wonder what is causing it." Wesley mused.  
  
"Don't look at me! She hasn't mentioned anything to me. Maybe she has a boyfriend."  
  
"Do you think? I mean she hasn't told us."  
  
"Well, if she has, we better find out and see what his intentions are, the girl has gone through lots of changes lately and the last thing she needs is some jerk breaking her heart."  
  
"You're right! We better pay close attention to her from now on."  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
"Thanks Dennis." – Said Cordelia as her ghost closed the door behind her and took her jacket. – "So, what have you both done today?"  
  
"Nothing special, pet." – Answered the blond neutralized vampire named 'William the Bloody' aka Spike, who was sitting comfortably on her couch with his feet on top of her coffee table.  
  
Cordelia headed for the kitchen where she got a tub of Ice Cream and two spoons and went to sit by his side.  
  
"That's pretty much all you've been doing since you appeared passed out on my doorstep. And that has been almost two weeks now. I mean, I understand that it took a couple of days for you to recover from the arrow Harmony shot at your back and the hangover and all... but you have all that super healing stuff, you're able to get over those things."  
  
"I'm still with a broken heart here. For crying out loud, I confessed my love to my mortal enemy. That's sick and not to mention sad."  
  
"Yeah. And it's sadder that she turned you down without a second though... Sorry! I didn't mean to..."  
  
"To what? Make fun of my pathetic unlife?"  
  
"No, I wasn't making fun! Back to the point, what I was saying is..."  
  
"Sure, like your life is so much better."  
  
"Meaning? My life is going great, thank you! It's not my perfect dream life, but I'm happy."  
  
"So happy that you had to open your heart and tell your problems to me?"  
  
"You're right, I was a little depressed when you arrived, featured word 'little', that's all water under the bridge, or over the bridge, or whatever. I don't even know why I told those things to you, I should have just staked you! Why do you have to be such an asshole?!" With that Cordy threw the Ice Cream at him and headed to her bedroom locking the door behind her.  
  
Hearing the click of the lock, Spike realized that he had crossed the line. Cordelia was the only person ever that had fully accepted him; she had listened and taken care of him after all he had done. He knew that even if she faked being better she was torn inside, and he instantly regretted his words. He went to her bedroom's door.  
  
"Luv?"  
  
"Go do nothing, Spike! Leave me alone!"  
  
"Sorry, pet! You're right. I'm an asshole! I wasn't thinking."  
  
The door opened and he stared at her, made nervous by the look she was sending him, she looked pissed. Then she gave him a huge smile and he couldn't help but give her a small grin. With that act he knew that she wasn't upset with him anymore.  
  
"Like you ever think!" – she teased him.  
  
"Hey, I do think! Only when it's very important things, like what we should have for dinner tonight. Chinese or pizzas?"  
  
"Pizza. You go and order and I'll take a hot bath. I need to relax a little. You won't believe what happened in the office today."  
  
"Can I join you?  
  
"Haha. As tempting as it sounds someone has to wait for the pizza. And I'm pretty sure that if Dennis receives it the delivery guy will let the pizza fall and run, and that wouldn't be good, 'cause I'm starving."  
  
"Ok, good point! But someday I will convince you to let me accompany you in that bath of yours."  
  
She smiled at him and went to her room. After she was out of sight Spike ordered the pizza and sat back down on the couch. "You know Dennis, you're a lucky guy, to be able to live with such amazing woman. I always knew Angel was stupid, but sending her away from his lame life is dumber than any other bad choice he ever made. And the guy has made some 'bad' choices, believe me!"  
  
Dennis turned the lamp on to show that he totally agreed with Spike.  
  
Almost one hour later the pizza had arrived and Cordy had come out of her bedroom in a comfy T-Shirt and boxers.  
  
"Hmm... That smells good."  
  
"So, are you more relaxed now?"  
  
"Yes, feeling all new."  
  
"Good. Let's eat! I recall you said that you were starving, isn't that right?"  
  
"Hell yeah."  
  
While they were eating Dennis brought two beers for them.  
  
"Thanks, Dennis."  
  
"Well, I'm dying to find out what happened at your office today. So spill it!"  
  
"Right. Do you remember Faith? I don't know if you ever met her, but she was that slayer who went evil and helped that mayor in his quest to screw our graduation up."  
  
"Yeah, I know the bird, or I heard about her. Woke from a coma some years ago, and was after the scoobies, right?"  
  
"Right. Well after she wreaked havoc in Sunnyhell, she decided to pay us a visit. And making a long story short, shot Angel, hit me and tortured Wes until she turned herself over to the police."  
  
"She just turned herself over? What caused her change of heart?"  
  
"Who knows? That's what Wes told me, so, anyway, she spent these last few months in jail and today she got out. And guess where she went after she visited our old friend Angel?"  
  
"Your office?"  
  
"Din din din the prize goes to the bleached vamp. Yeah, she showed up at the office and gave us this speech about being reformed and needing guidance, asking Wes to become her watcher again."  
  
"She just showed up?"  
  
"Yes. Haven't you heard what I just said?"  
  
"I did."  
  
"The host told her where we were and she made her appearance"  
  
"I thought the demon was supposed to be your friend?"  
  
"He is."  
  
"He is? The chick tried to kill you in the past and he just points his finger to where your HQ is, that doesn't sound very friendly to me."  
  
"The Host wouldn't put us in danger, he knew she wasn't thinking about hurting us."  
  
"'Cause he is an anorexic demon?"  
  
"Anagogic demon. Now may I continue with the story? Or are you going to keep interrupting me?"  
  
"Please, continue."  
  
"So now she is an employee of the agency and is sleeping there. I only hope that she doesn't burn the place down, 'cause we don't have money to rent another place."  
  
"Are you sure that she's clean now? I don't like the idea of a killer being around you."  
  
"Are you saying that I should kick you out? Because last time I checked you were a mass murderer." Teased Cordelia.  
  
"But I got a chip. How about her? I doubt she has one. Although on second thoughts she was locked up in a government facility, they could be experimenting on the detainees."  
  
"You have a fertile imagination. I don't think she has anything at all in her head. But do you want to know something odd? I think she might have changed. I don't know, I saw something in her eyes, looked like shame and... hope. And we help those who need help."  
  
"Yeah, right!!!"  
  
"Don't mock me!! I helped you, didn't I?"  
  
"Yes" Spike answered sincerely.  
  
"I was thinking and I decided that I'm going to tell the guys about you. I hate lies, and lying to my family this week made me feel like a hypocrite. So tomorrow I'll explain everything to them and at night you could go there so they can see that you're not so bad."  
  
"HEY! I'm bad! I'm just off my game for a while..."  
  
"Whatever makes you feel better."  
  
"And I have a better idea. You go, tell them and I run for my life. I have a slight feeling that once they hear I'm at your place they'll burst through the door and dust me before you can explain anything, and plus now they have the help of a slayer, and I'm done having my tight ass get kicked."  
  
"It's a possibility, but I'll make sure to clarify that you're neutered before I say you're here. Trust me!"  
  
"Ok, what else can I do anyway?"  
  
"Great. Now goodnight, I'm going to bed."  
  
"Sleep tight, pet."  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
At the Hyperion, everything was dark and appeared lifeless but inside Angel was in his bad mood, which had been his only mood for weeks, training.  
  
"I have to stop Darla" This had been his sole pursuit for the last few months. Every once in a while his thoughts would go to his friends but he always brushed them aside, he didn't want them in the middle of his war. "It's better for them to stay away from me."  
  
Tell me about it. I was sick and tired of that sorry excuse of a crew you had. All that whining, weakness, fear, it was disgusting whispered the little, but permanent voice that belonged to Angelus. But as much as that bothered me, I have to give you credit for Cordelia. Good choice!! I can imagine thousands of things I would do to that perfect body of hers. As his evil side continued to tease Angel, he started to demolish the punching bag. He really missed her.  
  
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The next morning, after Wesley had de-occulated the third eye of the Sharp girl, Cordelia found the courage to tell Gunn and Wesley about Spike. She wanted to use the time in which Faith had gone for a quick run, but she wasted so much time thinking about what she would say that Faith had already come back when she finally started.  
  
"So, do you guys remember Spike?"  
  
"What?" asked Gunn.  
  
"Oh, I don't think you know him, Gunn. Wes, do you remember him?"  
  
"Spike is a he?!"  
  
"Yes Gunn. He is Drusilla's child, used to be called William-the Bloody, until he changed his name to Spike, because he used railroad spikes to torture some of his victims. He was sired in London in 1880."  
  
"So he's a vampire, it's not like we never fought one before." Gibed Gunn.  
  
"He is responsible for death of two slayers, one in China during the Boxer Rebellion and another in New York in 1977. And three years ago he and Drusilla moved to Sunnydale, the same year Angelus was set free. Although I have never met him, I know for a fact that he is a vicious killer." Wesley explained in his through watcher manner.  
  
"Thanks for the history lesson, English. So resuming everything, he is a vamp and if we ever meet him he'll be on the pointy end of the stake."  
  
"I see we have work to do. Good, I can use some action. After all I'm well rested after almost one year on the reserve." - said Faith as she came from her bedroom over hearing the end of Gunn's comment.  
  
"No! There will be no staking."  
  
"Are you nuts, girl? From what Wes said we have enough reasons to dust him, if you don't count the fact that he is a vampire already."  
  
"But he's neutered now!"  
  
"I beg your pardon!"  
  
"Last year he was captured by those commandos in SunnyD and they put a chip in his head and now he can't hurt humans, only demons."  
  
"Oh, you lot are talking about Spike, right?!" – Faith interjected catching up with the conversation.  
  
"Yeah. How did you figure that out?"- Wesley asked before turning his head to Cordy. "How do know that?"  
  
"Well, Willow told me." – Cordelia said quickly, choosing to not reveal the big thing yet.  
  
"And I met him last year and found out that he is like a fangless puppy."  
  
"Interesting. So Spike is now harmless? This chip is a great invention; I mean being able to restrain a vampire is quite fascinating. I wonder if the Council is aware of that..." After babbling a little more about this Wesley returned his attention to Cordelia – "Why have you brought this subject up now Cordy?"  
  
"You see, ahmm, Spike is in L.A."  
  
"How do you know that, Barbie?"  
  
At everybody's expectant glare, Cordelia answered casually "Because he is at my apartment."  
  
"He is what?"  
  
"Just what you heard Wes, he is at my apartment with Dennis. And he has been there for a week now."  
  
"Have you completely lost your mind, Cordelia?" prompted Wesley.  
  
"Yeah, girl. What were you thinking?"  
  
At this time Faith burst into laughter. Gunn and Wesley glared at her.  
  
"What is so funny?" questioned Gunn.  
  
"C has a weak spot for vamps."  
  
"I do not!!"  
  
"Sure you do! Think about it, first you became friends with Angel, and now that he's out of your life, you brought Spike into it. From here it looks like you enjoy vampires' company."  
  
"Screw you, Faith!" snarled Cordelia. It was bad enough having to explain Spike to the boys, the last thing she needed was Faith making smart remarks.  
  
"That's enough! Cordelia tell us exactly why Spike is at your house." Demanded Wesley.  
  
"He appeared on my doorstep a week ago, I came back from the hospital after that night you got shot and there he was, passed out in front of my door. So I called Willow and after she assured me that he didn't represent any danger to me, I pulled him inside. Then when he sobered up, we had a chat."  
  
"Ohh, so let me get this straight." Gunn interrupted Cordelia's explanation. "You've been lying to us this whole week, is that it?"  
  
"I didn't lie Gunn. I omitted facts, it's different."  
  
"I'm not seeing the dif. You had a killer under your roof and hid that specific fact from us, in my opinion that counts as a lie. A big fat lie."  
  
"Calm down, Gunn. Let's hear Cordelia's reason first." Prompted Wesley. Faith withdrew from the group not wanting to get into the fight unless she really had to, after all it was her first day with them and she didn't want to take sides yet.  
  
"I didn't tell you befo..." started Cordelia only to be interrupted by Gunn.  
  
"Because you knew it was wrong, a mistake."  
  
"Don't put words in my mouth Gunn." Snapped Cordelia. "I didn't tell you anything because I knew that you would freak out, just like you are doing now. I knew that we would have an 'intervention time', but I never thought that you would attack me. Yes, Spike is a vampire but he is harmless, and was a mess when he came to me. He was feeling rejected and was suffering from a broken heart, and that's why I could relate to him, that was how I was feeling after Angel fired us...fired me."  
  
With that statement Gunn felt like a jerk for having accused her. He knew that she missed Angel, but at the same time he felt betrayed by her.  
  
"Ok Cordelia, I understand your actions, and I'm sure Gunn does too. We just worry about your safety. Sorry if we overreacted, but you have to understand that this news took us by surprise."  
  
"I know Wes. Sorry for not telling you both..."  
  
Gunn remained quiet just like Faith had been since the discussion had started.  
  
"That's ok, Cordy. But if Spike will continue to stay with you, I would like the chance to say few words to him" stated Wesley.  
  
"Yeah, I told him to come by later."  
  
"I'm gonna get some air." Mumbled Gunn needing a little time to chill out, he was pretty angry and upset at the moment.  
  
"Fine, Gunn." Exclaimed Wesley. After Gunn had left Wesley turned to Cordelia - "Don't worry about him, Cordelia. He'll clear his mind and then you two can have a talk to set things right."  
  
"I hope so Wes. I didn't want to hurt you guys, I just thought that it was better not to tell. I'll call Spike and let him know that it's safe to come now." With that Cordelia went to her desk and called her apartment.  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
After the host had warned Angel about the Senior Partner coming to the meeting at Wolfram & Hart, Angel went to all his contacts searching for further information. None of them could help him so he went back to Merle.  
  
"Where are my staff?" inquired Angel.  
  
"What?"  
  
"You heard me Merle. Don't make me beat you up. I don't have time to waste. Just give me the address, unless you want your head smashed against this brick wall." Angel threatened angrily.  
  
"Ok, ok. Here. Take this pamphlet. They were giving these out some weeks ago."  
  
Angel took the paper and left, when Merle turned around he was alone again. "I hate vampires!"  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
"I'm hungry. I'm going to go to that diner down the street and get something to eat." Uttered Cordelia as she left the room without waiting for a reply.  
  
Faith had been eyeing Wesley for some time and that was starting to bother him.  
  
"What Faith?"  
  
"What what?"  
  
"What do you want?"  
  
"I was just thinking, do you think Gunn will forgive C? I mean the guy was pretty pissed and he has been out for hours."  
  
"He will come around. He has a hate so strong for vampires, even working with Angel he was never truly comfortable. He just doesn't want to lose another sister."  
  
"Right. So you guys are like a family around here."  
  
"Pretty much. We all either don't have or are away from our relatives and this bond we have is stronger than that. We chose each other to be part of our own family."  
  
"Yeah." Murmured Faith, deep down she was envying a little that feeling of acceptance.  
  
Sensing this, Wesley assured the girl. "Give it time, Faith. Soon you'll feel this and understand what I'm referring to."  
  
Faith smiled at Wes and truthfully said – "Thanks. For saying this to me, for giving me another chance, you know... everything."  
  
"You're welcome!"  
  
When Cordelia arrived back the first thing she did was search for Gunn in the room. "He's not back yet?"  
  
"Sorry Cordelia. Maybe he went to his neighborhood." Wesley tried to reassure her.  
  
"He will forgive me, right?" murmured Cordelia.  
  
"Sure, he just needs some space." Voiced Wesley, giving her a reassuring smile.  
  
"Ok. Anyway, I bought you a sandwich."  
  
"Thanks Cordelia."  
  
Cordelia headed to where Faith was sitting.  
  
"Here. I bought you one too. You must be starving, I didn't see you eat anything today." Said Cordelia handing the sandwich to the slayer who was taken by surprise by the act.  
  
"Thanks C!"  
  
"It's ok. You're part of our strengthened team, we can't have you fainting in the middle of a battle now, can we?" Cordelia winked at her. Faith gave her a smile, thinking that maybe Wes was right and one day she would be part of their family.  
  
After devouring her snack Faith felt bored and decided to patrol. "I'm going to patrol a little. I'll be back in a while."  
  
"Ok, Faith. As I'm still recovering from this wound I can't train you properly yet, but it's good that you patrol, although you might be feeling a little rusty, do take care!"  
  
"Sure thing, boss!"  
  
After Faith went out, the office became silent. Wesley went back to his book and Cordelia kept looking at her watch, after all Spike was late for his meeting with Wesley. Just then the door opened "Finally! I was starting to think that you had skipped town already." She started to say but when she looked at who it was, she gasped. "Angel?!"  
  
Wesley had raised his head at the sound of the door opening, but when he identified the person he didn't know what to say, so he went for the first thing that popped into his head – "Good Lord! May we help you?"  
  
Without even look at them, Angel head to the bookshelf behind Cordelia's desk and started looking at the books there.  
  
"Excuse me! That area is for employees only." Wesley objected.  
  
"Yeah. You took all the books." Threw out Angel. "Besides, most of these books are mine. I paid for them or stole them, so they belong to me."  
  
"Not anymore, buster. You gave them up when you gave up your mission, now they belong to us." Cordelia defended.  
  
"Whatever." Murmured Angel, finding the book he was looking for and starting to leave. He didn't want to have met his friends again; he was on a quest and couldn't be distracted.  
  
"Where do you think you're going with that book?" inquired Cordelia very mad.  
  
"Away."  
  
"Not so fast. We're using it." Stated the seer taking the book from his hand and placing it on her desk, and putting another in his hand. "Here, take this instead, we don't need it anymore."  
  
When Angel looked at his hand he had a Cosmopolitan magazine, which he threw aside and leant in close to Cordelia, taking advantage of this act to inhale her scent. With that he smelt another familiar scent but couldn't remember who it belonged to, so he just dismissed that. "Give me the book! Or I'll take it."  
  
Cordelia just stared at him and Wesley decided to intervene.  
  
"Give him the book, Cordelia."  
  
Still she kept her position. Then Wesley pushed himself up of his wheelchair and burst out with "Just give him the damn thing. Let him get the hell out of our lives."  
  
Cordelia then threw the book at Angel and stated – "Take it and go away! I regret the day I met you. You only cause us a huge pain....in the ass. I don't even know what you are anymore."  
  
Her words hurt him, but he knew he had to keep his distance from them to provide them with the safety they didn't have when he was around. And if hate and regret were the only way to achieve this, he would use that.  
  
"I'm a vampire. Look it up!"  
  
Angel slammed the door closed while Wesley collapsed in his wheelchair and Cordelia kept looking at the closed door. "I can't believe him! He became such an asshole!"  
  
"Cordelia..."  
  
"A real jerk!"  
  
"Cordelia..."  
  
"I mean, if it was anybody else I would just say Get laid. But no! Not him."  
  
"Cordelia, listen..."  
  
"One good orgasm and hello Angelus. Although thinking about it, it would be something useful; we could use that fact to dust him, 'cause that's what he really deserves, along with some torture."  
  
"Cordelia! Ambulance, please!" hissed Wesley.  
  
"Oh my God, Wesley!" Cordelia hurried to call the ambulance, catching sight of Wesley's re-opened wound, which was bleeding quite profusely from his efforts in Angel's presence.  
  
After the ambulance had taken Wesley to the hospital, Cordelia had stayed at the office in case Gunn or Faith returned.  
  
"Knock, knock! Is it safe for Spike to come in?" announced Spike opening the door. "Ok. This is not the welcome party I was expecting. Where are the fighters, pet? I know that I'm a little late, it's just that Passions was on and I couldn't miss the end of the ep, you know." Seeing Cordelia's face Spike started to get worried, then he smelt blood in the air and crouched by her side. "What happened, luv?"  
  
She didn't answer him right away, instead she tightly embraced him. And Spike realized that she was crying. "Shh, pet! Tell me what is wrong. It's going to be ok." He had no idea what was going on, but he would do anything to make it ok.  
  
After she calmed down, she explained to him everything that had happened. By the end Spike couldn't believe Angel's actions, sure he hated the guy, but Spike had to admit that he never thought that Angel would ever look like Angelus, cruel and cold. "The poof has gone nuts. He was always pathetic, but now he isn't sounding like boring peaches, he is sounding more like..."  
  
"Angelus." completed Cordelia.  
  
At this time Faith arrived back from her patrol. "Hey, check it out, if it isn't Spike? Hi!"  
  
"Hello. You must be Faith, the slayer, I heard about you."  
  
"And I heard about you. Actually I met you before."  
  
"You two already know each other?" demanded Cordelia.  
  
"Really? I don't recall ever trying to kill you, and speaking about slayers, I have a very good memory. So you must be mistaken."  
  
"I was in a different package and said something about galloping you until your legs buckled and your eyes rolled."  
  
"I so didn't need to hear that." muttered Cordelia.  
  
"Bloody hell! I knew that was too weird to come out of the slayer's mouth." sniggered the vampire.  
  
"I am a slayer Spike." Faith winked at him. "Anyway, that's past. Where is Wesley? Did he head home already?"  
  
"He is at the hospital, Faith." murmured Cordelia.  
  
"What? Why?"  
  
"I don't feel like talking right now. Could you fill her in for me, Spike?"  
  
"Sure, pet."  
  
"I'll try to call Gunn one more time and then I'm going to see Wesley at the hospital."  
  
"Alright. I'll go with you when you get ready." stated Spike to the seer. Then he turned his attention to the slayer, who was still waiting for answers. "This is what happened..."  
  
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
Dennis opened the door to let Cordelia and Spike in. "If it's going to make you feel better, pet, call the watcher to check up on him."  
  
"No. I'll talk to him tomorrow. According to the nurse he just popped some stitches, nothing serious. He's probably resting now, and if I call I'll just disturb him. But I think I'm going to call Gunn, he still doesn't know what happened."  
  
"Ok, luv. I'm going to get some ice-cream for me."  
  
Cordelia got the phone and dialed Gunn.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hi Gunn!"  
  
"Hey Cordy! What is it? Did you have a vision?"  
  
"No. I'm calling to let you know that Wes needed to go to the hospital tonight."  
  
"Is he ok? What happened?" questioned an anxious Gunn, several thoughts running through his mind.  
  
"He just popped some stitches, it was nothing serious." answered Cordelia, not wanting to reveal what had happened in the office. After all, Wesley was alright now, and telling Gunn that Angel was the reason could result in catastrophic results.  
  
"Are you sure he's ok? I'll pass by the hospital to see if he needs anything..."  
  
"He's already home. Probably resting."  
  
"Oh! Right! So, I'll give him a call tomorrow, don't want to bother him."  
  
"Gunn?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
Taking a deep breath Cordelia started "Are we ok? I mean, you were pretty upset when you left today."  
  
"We're cool, Barbie. I wasn't expecting that, it took me by surprise. That's all."  
  
"Good" spoke Cordelia, her concerns alleviated. "I just wanted you to know that I didn't mean to hurt you by not telling you about Spike. I was just waiting for a good moment."  
  
"I know. I trust you Cordy."  
  
"I'm happy to know that. So, see you tomorrow?"  
  
"Sure thing. Bye!" With that he hung up.  
  
Cordelia turned the phone off, just as Spike was coming from the kitchen with a bar of chocolate in his hand.  
  
"We are out of ice-cream, couldn't find it anywhere. So, I'll have to satisfy myself with this chocolate. Are you ok?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"So..." Spike didn't know what to say.  
  
"I'm tired. I'll take a shower and crash. It was a long day." muttered Cordelia heading to her bedroom.  
  
Spike knew that that was an excuse for her to be alone and cry, so he just nodded and replied "Ok. I'm going out for a while. Get something to drink."  
  
When Cordelia closed her door, Spike looked to the ceiling and said to Dennis "Hey phantom, keep an eye on the girl for me, would ya? She needs some space and I need to do something." After the click of the lamp, which represented Dennis' response of yes, Spike left the apartment.  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
Holland's words kept repeating themselves in Angel's mind. In his way back to the hotel, Angel observed people, their behavior, their actions, and that's when it hits him, he couldn't eradicate the evil of the world, the only thing he could do was try to make the world a better place. He entered the Hyperion without turning on the lights, he was so focused in his thoughts that he only realized that he wasn't alone seconds before a fist connected with his nose and sent him to the ground.  
  
"You are a great idiot!" blurted the attacker.  
  
"Spike" growled Angel, annoyed with his grandchild. Getting up of the floor, Angel said "Whatever it is, I'm not in the mood to kick your ass."  
  
"This time it's your ass that is going to be kicked," gibed the blonde vampire.  
  
Angel got into a fight position then he recognized the scent he had smelt all over Cordelia earlier. He saw red when he realized that Spike had touched his seer. He wanted to know why that was, and he was determined to get the answers from his attacker, who was about to become the attacked. "Cordelia. You were near her. I can smell her all over you!" growled an angry Angel.  
  
Spike kept his ground, he knew Angel would know that he had been close to Cordelia; he also knew that his sire would be really angry. After all he knew that Angelus had always been possessive regarding his belongings. With a smirk on his face Spike bantered, "I have been taking very, very good care of her. Now, she is a real vixen, isn't she?"  
  
Angel was furious after listening to every word that left the blonde's mouth. He had pushed her away to protect her and now she was with Spike, of all people. "You shouldn't have gotten near her, boy."  
  
"I could say the same to you. Wasn't it enough that you hurt her feelings when you fired her, now you had to go and threaten the girl? You are disgusting!"  
  
"What I do is not of your concern."  
  
"It is when it involves my girl." exclaimed Spike wanting to push Angel to the limit.  
  
"She is not your girl."  
  
"Right now she is. She is my friend, which is more than I can say about you. She isn't yours anymore."  
  
With that Angel punched Spike so hard that he sent him flying into the opposite wall, cracking it a little. Spike got up in full vamp face ready to put some sense in the dense vampire. He didn't particularly like his task, but he hated see Cordelia in so much pain, and if bringing back her Angel was gonna make her feel better, he would do it.  
  
"Your friend? That's what you think? How dumb can you be, Spike? She would never be friends with something like you!"  
  
At his statement Spike laughed "Are you talking about yourself? Last time I checked you were the one she regretted having met, not me."  
  
Angel aimed a punch at the vampire's head, but Spike had seen it coming and dodged it sweeping his leg at Angel's. Angel jumped but couldn't avoid Spike's fist. That blow made Angel put on his game face and he snarled, "You'll be dust soon!"  
  
"Listen mate! I'm here to do you a favor" argued Spike, backing away with his hands up, demonstrating that he wouldn't charge in.  
  
This time it was Angel who laughed "You're gonna do me a favor? Yeah! Sure! You're going to be my punch bag for the nigh and then you'll be dust in the wind." Then he ran into the blonde vampire throwing punches and kicks as fast as he could. He had too much anger stored up and he needed the vent. Meanwhile, Spike blocked the blows as best as he could, but not fast enough and got punched a few times. So he used all his strength to punch Angel so he would be able to change position and preserve his life. "She loves you!" he yelled.  
  
Suddenly the blows stopped, and Spike took a deep breath and continued in a low voice "She loves you, and misses you. I can't see why, but she does. If it was up to me, you would have been dust a week ago. But if I did that it would break her heart, and she would suffer. More than she is now. Angel, I wouldn't be able to bear that." Looking at Angel, Spike confirmed that he had Angel's full attention and kept going "But even her strong love for you is not eternal. If you keep this up and continue to hurt her, that love will fade away and then you will really lose her."  
  
Angel was stunned, he had been since his child had yelled. "What?" That was all he could think at the moment. Seeing that Angel was stupefied, Spike continued.  
  
"That's why I came, to open your eyes. So you can make things better with her."  
  
"Why? Why are you doing this?"  
  
"Are you deaf? Or are you more stupid than I thought? Although that's almost impossible! I like the girl. She is nice to me, treats me like I'm not a monster. She makes me feel good. She helped me, now I'm paying her back. Go! Make amends to her! Make her happy! It's your only chance."  
  
Angel was still shocked, but got his mind together and said truthfully "I love her! I really do! I didn't want admit it, but..."  
  
"Oh suck it up! I don't wanna hear that!" Spike cut him off.  
  
Some time passed and the silence kept growing, until Spike snapped "Are you just gonna stand there? Look you big poof, there is an amazing woman with a broken heart in her apartment waiting for a specific dumbass to apologize."  
  
Angel lifted his head and looked directly into Spike's blue eyes "Right. Thanks!"  
  
"I didn't do it for you."  
  
"I know." Then Angel left with only one thought in his head, to get Cordelia back and tell her what he felt.  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
At his apartment Wesley was resting on his couch, watching Tv and drinking tea when the doorbell rang. Smoothly he got up and went to answer the door.  
  
"Hi" his visitor timidly began.  
  
"Faith, hello! What are you..."  
  
"Heard what happened. I just wanna... You know, see if you're... I-I shouldn't have come." Turning away quickly, Faith started to retreat when Wesley spoke. "Wait! Would you like to come in? I don't have coffee, but how about some tea?"  
  
"Yeah, could be fun. Not fun-fun, but nice" said the slayer feeling relieved that Wesley didn't shut his door in her face. Listening to what she said Wesley gave her a small smile and motioned for her to come in. After he closed the door, Faith didn't know what to say or do, she had come intent on seeing if he was ok, now she was kicking herself for not thinking this through properly.  
  
"Take a seat. I'll get a cup for you" said Wesley cutting her thoughts off. Faith headed to the couch and seated herself, she observed her surroundings and spoke. "Nice place."  
  
"Cordelia deserves the credit" said Wesley handing the cup to her. "She helped me out with the decoration, or did all of it. She said that being single wasn't an excuse to have an ugly apartment."  
  
"Sounds like C. it's comfy here."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
"Yeah, so... are you ok? Spike told me you had to go to the hospital."  
  
"Yes, I'm fine. I just popped some stitches, but nothing serious. Wait! Spike? Dear Lord! I had forgotten he was supposed to stop by the office."  
  
"Well, I'm sure he can go back another day, it's not like he has a busy agenda. I think!"  
  
"I'm just worried about Cordelia being near him."  
  
"I don't know if my opinion counts, but I think he won't harm her. He seemed to care about her a lot. But that's just me."  
  
"It does count, Faith" honestly uttered Wesley "You are a part of Angel Investigations now. Trust and friendship are the most important things we have."  
  
"Right." Faith looked at Wesley and smiled. "We really need to change that name. I mean, there's no point being Angel Investigations, without Angel."  
  
"I agree. We should call it 'The Wyndham-Price Agency'."  
  
"Yeah. I'm sure C and Gunn are gonna love that." laughed Faith, feeling relaxed and accepted for once in her life.  
  
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*  
  
Cordelia was restless. She had been in her bed for hours but couldn't bring herself to sleep. So she got up and went to the kitchen intending on finish the bowl of ice cream she had hidden from Spike. She had started eating the dessert when she heard a knock on the door. "I can't believe Spike forgot his key again." muttered the girl "It's alright Dennis. I'll get it."  
  
She opened the door already speaking "How many times do I have to tell you to grab that key before you..." she stopped mid sentence when she saw who it was.  
  
"Hi" timidly spoke Angel.  
  
"What do you want? Need another book and came here to take it from me?" hissed Cordelia.  
  
"Cordelia..." started Angel trying to apologize to her, but was cut off by her remark.  
  
"You lost your time. All our books are at the office, so bye-bye."  
  
She was closing the door when Angel spoke. "I'm sorry!"  
  
"You're sorry?! Funny! Who would have thought that you had a sense of humor?" sarcastically stated the seer.  
  
"I'm really sorry Cordy. I understand that you're upset with me. I don't know what I was thinking. I thought that I was doing the right thing, keeping you out of harm's way. Now I see how mistaken I was. You, Wes and Gunn are my friends. You're my best friend. Pushing you away was a stupid thing to do. I should have kept you close. You are my humanity."  
  
Cordelia didn't know if this was real or if she was dreaming. Part of her was happy that Angel seemed to be sorry and wanting to fix things, but the other part of her was still hurting and bitter with him. "So, you expect me to forgive you, all that you've done over these last few months, just because you say you're sorry?"  
  
"No. I expect you to give me another chance to try to show you that I regret all that I've done."  
  
"What guarantee do I have that you are not going to lose it next time you see Darla, or some lawyer?"  
  
"I won't. I will not make the same mistake twice. I realize now what my priorities are."  
  
"What are your priorities?"  
  
"You. I need you in my life. More than I thought possible. You give me strength, confidence. You're the one that makes me feel like I can be a better man."  
  
"Angel." Cordelia had tears in her eyes, she was listening to Angel and it was like she could see his soul, see how sorry he was, see the truth in his every word.  
  
"I love you" clearly declared Angel, looking directly into her eyes.  
  
Between tears, Cordelia gave him a big smile and muttered. "I love you. I tried not to, but it was stronger than me. And when you turned away..."  
  
Angel cut her words off bringing his lips to hers and gently kissing her. She held onto him like he was going to dissolve. It was the most tender and loving kiss she had ever had. When they broke apart, he looked deeply into her eyes and said. "I love you. I never though Spike was gonna be useful."  
  
"Spike?" asked a confused Cordelia. "What does Spike have to do with anything?"  
  
"He was the one who opened my eyes. He made me see what I was losing."  
  
"He did?"  
  
"Let's not talk about Spike."  
  
They were about to kiss again when Spike cleared his throat on the doorway. "I can see everything is fine now. Good." Spike went and sat on the couch. "Hey! Ice cream! Where was it? I looked in the fridge and didn't find it earlier." Spike said seeing the ice cream on the coffee table and gathering a spoon full of goodness for him to appreciate.  
  
"Spike, why don't you go patrol, or something?" suggested Angel, pretty annoyed with his child. Sure he had helped him, but he was really a pain in the ass.  
  
"No can do. There is this program on Discovery Channel about sharks that I'm dying to see. Besides staying here, I bother you, which is a plus. And you and the cheerleader already talked and set thing right. There's nothing else to talk about."  
  
"Actually, there is still something we need to discuss, Angel." drawled Cordelia. "You still have to talk to Gunn and Wes."  
  
"I know. I will. I just had to come here first, make things better with you."  
  
"Cute. Now shut the hell up!" snorted Spike. "The show is starting, and I couldn't understand what the bloody diver just said."  
  
Cordelia looked at Spike, eating all her ice cream, stated seriously. "Hold it, blondie. That's mine!" taking the spoon out of his hand she continued, "You want some, you go and get yourself a spoon."  
  
"Hey, peaches, make yourself useful and go get us a spoon. After all I did you a favor." remarked Spike without taking his eyes away from the screen.  
  
Angel looked at Spike and mumbling went to the kitchen. "I really hate him." When he got back he sat by Cordelia's side and the three of them watched the show enjoying the ice cream.  
  
Angel knew he had a lot to apologize for to his friends, but decided that he would worry about that tomorrow. Right now he just wanted to enjoy having Cordelia's presence back in his life. Somehow he knew that everything would turn out ok, as long as Cordelia stayed by his side. 


End file.
